Heating system for railway cars



July 4, 1944. v. E. WEST HEATING SYSTEM FOR RAILWAY GAR S Filed April 5. 1942 3 Sheets-Sheet l Arm/72 July 4,- 1944. v 5, WEST 2,353,097

HEATING SYSTEM FOR RAILWAY CARS Filed April 3, 1942 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 172067210: IQZZWEWaSZ July 4, 1944. v E, 1' 2,353,097

HEATING SYSTEM FOR RAILWAY CARS I Filed April 3, 1942 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 122061220 VZ'CZW'E flies? heater.

Patented July 4, 1944 HEATING SYSTEM FOR RAILWAY oARs 1 Victor E. West, Chicago, 111., as'signor, by mes'ne assignments, to Standard Railway Equipment Manufacturing Company,

Delaware a corporation of Application April 3, 1942, S erial No. 437,501"

1 Claim.

7 The invention relates to so-called railway refrigerator cars and particularly to means for heating such cars. The railroads and car operating companies have in service a large number of such so-called refrigerator cars, the essential feature of which is an insulated body and which usually includes means to refrigerate the interior of the car and means to supply air from the outside to the interior of the car. I

The conventional refrigerator car, which is commonly called an end bunker car, has an ice bunker at each end of the car and the lading compartment between the ice bunkers. .When ice is placed in the bunkers, the cold air circulates from the ice bunkers under the foraminous rack which supports the lading and then filters upwardly through the lading compartment, thereby refrigerating the lading. In cold weather, a heater is placed in one or both bunkers and the air warmed by the heater circulates over the top .of the lading and filters downwardly therethrough to heat such lading.

An overhead bunker type of refrigerator car has been developed by my assignee, a typical design of which is shown in Bonsall Patent 2,136,- 999 of November. 15, 1938. In this car the .end bunkers have been eliminated and consequently the conventional location for the heaters has also been eliminated. There has been developed an underslung heater suspended below the floor of the car and arranged to heat the car by means of fluid circulating in pipes under th floor rack of the car, the fluid being heated as it flows through a coil disposed within the underslung Such a device has given satisfactory service but is objectionable in many cases because of its weight and cost and furthermore because it is a permanent installation and must be carried with the car during warm as well as cold weather. a An object of my invention is to provide a heat ing system th major parts of which are easily removable and replaceable so that the system maybe installed in cars at the approach of cold weather and removed at the end of the cold season, as will be hereinafter described in detail. The removal of the heating system is a relatively simple operation and the car with the heating system removed refrigerates with unimpaired efficiency.

Another object is to provide a heating system which is equally well adaptable to both the above described conventional end bunker car and to Another object'is to provide "a; heating'system which utilizes the conventional portable charcoal heater. Such heaters, which are made by several heater manufacturers, are reasonably well standardized as to dimensions, operation and fuel capacity and the railroads own many thousands of such heaters which they have distributed along their lines atpoints where refrigerator car trains are serviced. At these points, the heaters are either removed, installed, lighted or extinguished as conditionsdictate. While Ihave shown my invention adapted to use a conventional portable charcoal heater it is to be understood that it is not limited to the use of such a heater but may be easily adapted to use practically an type of heater desired. a V

Another object of the invention is to provide a system of hot air distributing ducts underithe floor rack to conduct air from the heater to all Parts of the car. J i

Another object, particularly adaptable to the above mentioned overhead bunker cars which embody side wall' fiues, is to provide for a flow of Warm air upwardly'through one or more of such side. wall flues so that the warm air descends through the lading from the upper part of the car and theascending warmair further insulates the walls. Other objects and advantages of my invention will be apparent from the fOllOWing detailed description by referring to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings: I

Fig. 1 is a transverse section through a refrigerator car showingone modification of my invention, the section beingtaken online 1-! of Figure 3.

Fig. .2 is a longitudinal section through the heater box of the car shown in Figur 1 as indicated by 1ine'2--2 of Figure 3; V

Fig. 3 is a plan section taken on line 33 of Figure 1. f

Fig. 4 is a section on line 4-4 of Figure 3.

Fig. 5 isa view similar to a portion of Figure 2 with the heater box removedand the door installed.

Fig.6 is a'partial transverse sectionthrough a refrigerator car embodying a modified form of my invention. j a Fig. 7 is a plansection on line'l--'l of Fig- ,ure 6.

The general parts of the refrigerator car shown are insulated roof A; side walls B; end wall C; floor D; refrigerant containers E; hatches F for loading refrigerant into the containersjE; side wall flues G; foraminous floor rack H and'space inlet openings N to the enclosures M are provided by spacing the partitions L from the roof A and air discharge openings- P lead .f'romthe' enclosures M to the flues G at alower eleva tion than the air inlet openings N. The refriglongitudinally of the car to provid air passages between the ends of the containers. The partitions L are spaced apart to form a duct Q which communicates between the lading compartment R and openings N.

' Air circulation during refrigeration is as follows: Air in the lading compartment R is warmed by contact with the lading and rises through the duct Q to enter the enclosing structures M through the air inlet openings N. The air is then cooled by contact with the cold refrigerant con tainers E and falls by reason of its lower temperature and therefor greater densitythrough the discharge openings P and flues G to the space J whence it rises through the rack'H- to the lading compartment R. The above described cycle is thereafter continuously repeated.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, an opening 2 is provided in the floor D of the car and surrounded by a wood frame 3 disposed below the floor.

-When the car is used for refrigerating or ventilating, the opening 2 is closed by a door 5 as shown in Figure 5. When the car is used for heating, an insulated receptacle, which in the form shown is a box 6, is attached in a depending position in alignment with the opening 2 in the floor, as shown in Figures 1 to 3. I

The box 6 includes three rigid wall 8, three false Walls 9 spaced inwardly from the rigid walls 8 to form a three-sided flue II and a door M for closing the fourth side of the box. The false walls 9 are spaced from the bottom of the is] erant containers E are preferably'spaced apart the heater I! are similarly permanently and rig-- idly attached to the car floor D by the heavy gauge metallic straps 3|, shown most clearly in Figure 2. A longitudinally extending duct 33 is suspended under the center floor rack board 21 and a transversely extending duct 34 is suspended under one of the transverse floor rack boards and communicates between the space under the hood 24' and the longitudinally extending duct 33. A deflector 36 may be provided within the 1ongitudinal duct 33 to guide air flowing from the transverse duct 34 into the longitudinal duct 33 in opposite directions.

In operation of the heating system, the air adjacent the heater I! is warmed and rises through the opening 2 to the hood 24 thence through the transverse, duct 34 and into the longitudinal duct 33 from which it escapes through the openings 39-to the space J under the floor rack H.

box 6 to provide communication between the flue I l' and the interior of the box. A portable heater 7 I1 is positioned within the box and preferably confined by the false walls 9. The heater t7 shown is a conventional type commonly used for heating railways cars, but it is understood that the box 6 may be adapted to receive any type of heater.

it is necessary to refuel the heater, it maybe easily removed from the box for this purpose;

The opening 2 in thefloor is provided with a The heater may be lighted, extinguished and regulated by opening the door l4 and when three sided partition 20' which is aligned with and engages the three false walls 9 of theboxB so as to extend the flue H upwardly to the'upper surface of the car floor D. The upper endof the flue II is covered by a perforated metallic plate 2i to prevent the entrance of debris into the box board 21 is permanently attached to the car floor .D and supported preferably by heavy gaugemetallic straps 28 as shown in FigureA; The .three transversely extending floor rack: boards 30 above 70 The center longitudinally extending floor rack" The warm air then filters upwardly through the lading compartment R and, upon giving up its heat to the lading, settles downwardly to the floor either through the lading compartment R or through the side Wall flues G. It then flows downwardly through the flue H in the box 6 and is again warmed by the heater l1.

Figures 6 and 7 show a modified warm air distribution system. A. gutter is provided ex tending longitudinally of the center of the car to collect liquid which is deposited by the meltage of the refrigerant or by other means. Such liquid is drained to the exterior of the car through the drain 46. A longitudinally extending duct 48 is permanently mounted above the gutter 45 and a transversely extending arm 49 branches off from the longitudinal. duct 48. A conduit 5| through the floor D of the car communicates with the transversely extending arm 49 and warm air may be sent upwardly through the conduit 5| by any suitable means, such as the heater in the box shown in Figures 1 to 5.

The longitudinal duct 48 is provided with a plurality of short, spaced apart spouts 52 leading horizontally therefrom. The usual floor rack I-I comprised of longitudinally extending slats 54 supported by transversely extending stringers- 55 is provided and is preferably hinged to the car side wall in the conventional manner. Transversely extending conduits 51 are attached to the lower sides of the slats 54; the conduits 51 align with and overlap thespouts 52 when the floor rack H is supported by the floor D, as shown at in the ends thereof to direct a certain amount of air upwardly through the side wall flues G, thereby contributing to the insulation of the carwalls.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the preferred' form of the invention, though it is to be jur derstood that the invention is not limited to the exact details of construction shown and described, as it is obvious that various modifications thereof, within the scope of the claim, will occur to persons skilled in the art.

I claim: I V

In a refrigerator ,car having walls; roof and floor, a lading compartment, a foraminous rack arranged to support a lading upon the floor and The conduits 5.1 have at the other end with said flue, a closable opening through said floor communicating with said duct, and removable means depending from said floor below said opening for supplying heat therethrough to said duct for causing warmed air to circulate through said duct and conduits upward- 1y through said flues, across said refrigerant compartment and downwardly through said lading compartment.

VICTOR E. WEST. 

